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Grillo stopped a half-dozen meters short of the bowl-shaped depression in thefloor He motioned and Skyler was marched to stand beside his at Skyler’s wrists were cut, bringing a sudden rush of blood to his nu back into his fingers

Two uards--no, workers, Skyler decided--carried one of the rucksacks up and set it on the ground At Grillo’s nonverbal order they pulled the bag open to reveal the object within

A cube nestled within the folds of the cloth bag, blue-white light rippling along inset georooves in its sides Like all the other objects, one side had a difference--a feature, not an imperfection--to indicate "this way up" In the case of the cube, a channel was etched along the length of one side

"Leave us," Grillo said, to no one in particular Alex Warthen opened his mouth to object but stopped at Grillo’s raised hand "It’s all right This one won’t try anything with all of his friends held captive"

"He fled Gateway Station while his creas--"

"He can’t flee now, though, can he?" Grillo let a few seconds of silence follow "There is nowhere to go He’ll have to look into their dead eyes this tiht it upon theed his lance at Skyler, and clambered back up the ladder Larsen followed, and Skyler and Grillo were alone

Oddly, Skyler felt uards had been present He steadied himself, then turned to face the slumlord

"What happens when it is inserted?" Grillo asked

"The ship has an orgas"

"Skip the salty language then and explain, quickly"

Orgasht into all this Jacobite nonsense "There’s a lot of light, and waruely akin to ecstasy" Never ht across the rooasuessed Grillo had never experienced such a thing He seeloves just to take a piss

"All right then Proceed" He kept his gun trained on Skyler now, aim steady

"Ladder’s up!" a voice shouted froilant," Grillo called back "Shoot on sight"

"Understood"

Skyler glanced back The spherical lobby chamber was fiftyin a line now, between the ter doors A human shield Hands bound, uards ith theht, plus the tho’d left to check on the other prisoners If Skadz or Ana tried to approach that roounned down instantly

Best to hurry, Skyler decided Get everyone’s attention on the relic, wait for that flash of light, then act Hopefully the others would get the hint He’d need to shout so, just to be sure

"Now, Skyler," Grillo said

Skyler nodded, shifted his focus to the relic on the ground before hirooves with a liquid pace, inviting scrutiny, de it Skyler forced himself to blink and break the spell, then deliberately blurred his vision as he knelt and lifted the cube

He struggled under the weight of it The strain brought fresh pain from his shins and knees Even his chin bloorimace stretched the skin there But it all felt distant now, as if he were just an observer to it now, studying the injuries froht on by the news of Kelly’s death The cold thirst for revenge numbed his mind better than any painkiller ever had

Skyler crossed the distance to the socket indent on the floor and knelt He heard Grillo gasp as the indent sucked inward as if the floor werea pitch-black half-dome almost three meters deep and wide in the floor

"This was easier in zero-g," Skyler said, shied bowl

"No talking Finish it" To haun to the back of Skyler’s head

Skyler perched hie and lifted the cube object out over the ht of the relic ainst Skyler’s grip, pulled doard into its designated slot

The glow began to build, starting fro like spilled laser light into the bowl The center of the receptacle bulged outward, reaching and taking on the same shape as the object

Skyler pulled his feet out of the pit and lifted his arm across his face, ready to shield his eyes

Object and floor met In that instant a blue-white flare seemed to come from everywhere at once He pressed his ary release on his skin, the pressure pushing hi bubble of force

Someone cried out in alarm A yelp that was instantly cut off

Skyler felt his feet slip A centi sideways

The entire room rolled

Chapter Thirty-Four

The Key Ship

2APR2285

Tania claan It flooded through the key-rooh shut eyes the world seeht as a summer day